Midseason Slump or Return to Mediocrity?

The Hawks are in a tight spot, as they were expected to improve with the acquisition of Murray, hopefully reaching another deep playoff run. However, that is not the case this season as the  Atlanta Hawks stand at the ninth seed, with a 17-17 record, still as a fringe play-in team. Many factors have gone into the Hawk’s mediocre season, but I have noticed the most significant ones.

Lack of Identity and Rotation Problems

One of the points in the pre-season that Coach McMillan emphasized is the problem of needing a concrete identity last year. This year, it’s the same problem. The Atlanta Hawks have yet to have a definitive team identity. Part of it is to blame on the players, but Coach McMillan takes equal blame. He needs to give players a chance to solidify themselves within the rotation. McMillan opts to provide minutes to Justin Holiday over AJ Griffin, even though Griffin has already proven himself to be a solid player. This iteration of the Atlanta Hawks team sorely lacks 3-pt shooting, and AJ Griffin is one of the few players who can provide the shooting. Rotational mistakes like these can cause

Compatibility

McMillan is an incredible coach with lots of pedigree, but his flaws show more often than his strengths with this Atlanta Hawk team. McMillan is known for his defensive-oriented coaching but has always struggled to make the proper adjustments to win games. He made the suitable adjustments in-game when the Hawks switched to a zone defense against the Knicks, winning the game and overcoming a 20-point deficit. This season, the Atlanta Hawks have blown many leads in the fourth quarter, even when they are up 10 or 15 points. His stubbornness to not play rookies and stick with veterans has killed the Hawks time and time again. This year, with the roster significantly Last year, McMillan leaned on Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot to play heavy minutes instead of Jalen Johnson. This year, he entrusts the veteran Justin Holiday, who is taking minutes from AJ Griffin. 

Overcompensating for Last Year’s Problems

Last year, the Atlanta Hawks were an excellent 3-pt shooting team. The Hawks were 18th in 3PA and second in the league in 3P%. This season, the Hawks are 26th in 3PA and 27th in 3P%. The Hawks overcompensated by going all-in on defense and a secondary ball handler, as that was the main reason the Hawks were defeated in the playoffs last year by the Heat. The Hawks traded for Murray and signed the Holiday brothers to provide more ball handling and defense. At the same time, the Hawks lost Kevin Huerter and Danilo Gallinari, two of their shooters. The lack of shooters has shown clearly, as the Atlanta Hawks offense used to be more dynamic. The lack of space for Trae Young is partly why he went into a shooting slump, as there is little space for him to operate in the paint.

The Atlanta Hawks have to make proper adjustments, or else it will be a repeat of last year; a fringe play-in team that will be an easy opponent for the top seeds in the top-heavy Eastern Conference.